Petrichor
by escapethenoodles
Summary: Carter forgets Adrian.
1. Prologue

Carter wakes up in a hospital dorm, sunlight streaming through the curtains.

He sees a face looming over him, auburn hair illuminated by the slivers of light coming through the windows, warm brown eyes that remind him of a rainy day cuddled up in a blanket and cinnamon hot chocolate.

"Carter," rasps the boy's voice. It's hoarse, like he hasn't spoken in weeks. Tears start to stream from those chocolate-brown eyes of his.

"Carter, Carter, Carter," he repeats, "...finally, my Carter, my stupid idiot Carter, my Carter, Carter..." he continues, as if Carter's own name is his only salvation.

He bends down to put his damp cheek next to Carter's on the soft pillow, to share his warmth, to kiss his smile back to life.

"Carter," repeats Adrian.

"Who are you?" he replies.


	2. Tomorrow

"She pulls his shaking body close.

"It'll be okay, shh, shh..." He's thin. She hopes he's been eating properly.

"No, no, no," he repeats, shaking his head into her shoulder. "No, no, no, NO!" screams Adrian.

Maria jumps. Strangers passing by turn their heads to see what the commotion is all about. Maria glares them away. Adrian never loses his cool. Not even when Carter was first hospitalised. Not even when the doctors told him he's in a coma.

"NO MARIA, IT WON'T BE OKAY! IT NEVER WILL! HE'S GONE, MARIA! MY CARTER IS GONE, CARTER, Cuh-Carter..." His voice breaks and his hands go to his mouth. His screams turn into whispers and his whispers turn into sobs and his sobs turn into coughs. Maria feels helpless. Adrian wasn't even this fucked up after David.

Well,she reasons, it's understandable. After all, this was his first proper relationship. Maria had even suspected it might be his last. Never in her wildest dreams did she expect it to turn out this bad.

"M-m-mari-"

"Shh... No need to say anything." She continues to stroke his smooth auburn hair. His face is buried into her soft chest and his hands grip onto her back until his knuckles turn white. It's as if he thinks that if he lets go, she'll fall away too. His tears dampen her grey shirt. His entire body vibrates at a higher frequency than it should, as if she has embraced a machine, not a human. It doesn't feel right. She wants to calm him down, but how? Maybe Jason would know. She should call him up, two people would be better than one.

"Adrian has stopped shaking, but the tears are still leaking. He's loosened his grip on her.

"I miss him so-" he gasps, "So much, Maria-ah..." He can't get the words out. "I just want my funny, goofy, silly Carter, the one who-who thought it would be a good idea to seduce me with streamers, who thought he could screw me in a library, who brought us home that day we were drunk, who-who used those stupid, cheesy pick up lines and saved you that one time, and saved me everyday, that Carter, not this one, no, not this one, this isn't my Carter, no, no, Maria..." he trails off into more "no's" and sniffles.

Maria wants to cry. She can't see him like this, small and broken. But she can't break down. This is his moment, not hers. She has to stay strong for him. She's all the ground he has beneath his feet right now, and if she can't keep her calm, everything will spiral out of control, further than it has already.

"Okay, NO." She decides. She pulls him away, and turns him to face her. This is enough. "No more crying, you hear? We're past that. And this Carter? It's the same Carter! Carter hasn't left you! He's here, waiting for you. Yes, he may not remember you, but that's okay! You can make him remember you."

"M-mmh... B-buht... But the nurse... She said..." His eyes are a red, raw mess

"Yes, I know what she said. That you can't force any memories onto him, that any mental stress can make his situation worse. But she never said he's a hopeless case either, did she? He's still able to recover, little by little, on his own! He's still in there, Adrian.

"I know. I know... They warned us, but I-I couldn't just believe them! They said he might not wake up! That he mightn't remember me if he did! But there was still hope, they said. There was still hope... And now there isn't even any of that left. I'm gone. He doesn't remember any of me. Not even my name, Maria, not even my face."

"Maria cups Adrian's face in her hands like a little child. She dabs at the wetness around his eyes with her shirt.

"But do you really believe that? Can you accept it and just move on? No one ever said there wasn't any hope, hun. There's always hope. You know what? I wouldn't be surprised if that idiot of a boyfriend of yours fell in love with you all over again! Remember how he went after you back then? I'm tellin' ya, once that boy decided he wants something, he'll go get it. And it's not over yet, Adrian. He's not dead. He still loves you, he just doesn't know it yet."

Adrian has stopped crying. He sniffs, looks down at the floor, then up to Maria's face, then down again.

"...Thanks, Maria. And...uh, sorry." He breaks out into a smile. "It's not very... _manly_ of me to be crying.

"Hun, don't you even start. _I'm_ the man in this relationship." she teases, her eyes closed and her index finger raised in a matter-of-factly manner. Adrian laughs. Maria is glad he's back to normal. She never wants to see him like that again.

Maria walks through the dimmed lights of the hospital, beeping monitors and a stale, blanched smell suspended around her. Hospitals used to creep her out, but ever since Carter was hospitalized, she'd somewhat gotten used to them.

When Carter was first admitted, Adrian wouldn't do anything, talk to anyone. He wouldn't attend much school either, which was a pretty big deal at the time. All he did was study. He'd immerse himself in his books, he wouldn't look up from them. The odd times when he was present at lunch breaks, Maria would try to talk to him, but there wouldn't be much of a response, just a lot of empty eyes staring down at his untouched lunch. Not once had he gone to visit Carter, she found out from his parents.

However, all of this ended when Adrian was hospitalized. She knew he wouldn't eat at lunch, but she didn't know it was this bad. That was the first time she'd seen him cry since David. Silent, still tears rolling down his cheeks as he lay in his sickly white sheets. It broke her heart, but it was the first sign of emotion she'd seen from him in weeks. That was also the first time he went to see Carter. _Look what you've done to him,_ she thought. She couldn't help it. Adrian had been left battered and broken from the incident. She didn't even know how it happened, only that Carter was with him at the time. Adrian couldn't get the words out for the first few weeks.

"It's been a year since then, and everyone is settling into college. Adrian is trying, but still struggling, not with grades but with communication. He stays by Maria's side most of the time, he won't leave her until it's absolutely necessary. Maria suspects he doesn't even have any friends in class. Just like Adrian wants his old Carter, Maria wants her old Adrian. And the only way to do that is bring Carter and Adrian together.

She passes a door; room 210, Carter's room. The windows are glass, and the curtains are pulled back. He must have forgotten to close them. Carter lies snoring on his bed, one arm outstretched near his phone and the other above his forehead. His legs are wrapped around the sheets, none of them actually covering his body. What a stupid way to sleep. He really is an idiot.

"Maria!" someone whisper-shouts. She jumps and turns.

"Ah, Jason!" she replies.

"I only just got your text, I'm sorry. Where's Adrian?"

"It's okay. He's asleep on the couch, we decided to spend the night here and meet Carter when he wakes up. Maybe he'll remember you, at least."

"Mhm," mumbles Jason.

He opens up a little and invites her into a hug. She waddles up to him and rests her head against his chest. She's pretty thankful for the hug. If she hadn't gotten one by the end of the day she probably would have cried. It's been a long day. Jason tightens his huge arms around her. His nose is in her hair, by her ear.

"A-are you _sniffing_ me?!" she exclaims, a little too loudly.

"N-no!" Jason laughs, but his pulse is now audible, faster than the beeping of the monitors and it's such an obvious lie. Maria grins.

"You big dork."


End file.
